It remains to be seen whether Colorado quarterback commitment Shane Dillon being named to the prestigious national Eliite 11 QB list becomes a blessing or a curse.

Expectations are sure to rise. But it does indicate that the senior-to-be at El Cajon (Calif.) Christian has the physical gifts and mental sharpness to succeed at the next level.

Read the story here from Rivals.com’s Adam Munsterteiger, publisher of BuffStampede.com, who writes:

24 of the nation’s top quarterback prospects from the Class of 2012 competed for five days at Pepperdine University in Malibu, Calif., this past week with the goal of being named an Elite 11 quarterback.

Colorado commitment Shane Dillon could not contain his emotions when he achieved that goal on Friday.

“Oh my gosh, [being named an Elite 11 quarterback] is a dream come true,” Dillon said in a text message to BuffStampede.com.

At El Cajon (Calif.) Christian high school, Dillon recorded 2,982 yards and completed 19 touchdowns during a junior year. He committed to CU and also got offers from Ohio State, Arizona, Cincinnati and Vanderbilt.

Steele on Monday ranked CU No. 1 in the nation in strength of schedule in an article on his website, ahead of Iowa State, Baylor, Oregon State and LSU. Based on opponents’ collective winning percentage last season, CU ranks 14th in the nation in degree of difficulty, with teams combining for a 98-67 record (59.4 winning percentage).

Steele’s rankings, though, take into account road games and power ratings. Colorado’s non-conference slate includes a road game at Ohio State on Sept. 24 and, by a quirk, a home game against California on Sept. 10.

Wednesday’s “super league” announcement in Colorado Springs will dramatically change the college hockey landscape, including how I cover the NCAA Tournament. The chosen ones — 2011 NCAA Tournament participants DU, CC, North Dakota, Miami (Ohio), Minnesota-Duluth and Nebraska-Omaha — will publicly announce their intentions to split from the WCHA and CCHA, respectively, and form a star-studded start-up league that they hope will eventually include Notre Dame by the time it debuts for the 2013-14 season.

On one hand, I love this move because the super league will make a fine non-conference scheduling partner with the Big Ten (Minnesota, Michigan, Wisconsin, Michigan State, Ohio State, Penn State). So the primary team I cover, DU, will mostly be playing big-time hockey programs on national or regional television.

The Big Ten will have the Big Ten Network, and the super league is rumored to have reached a deal — or will undoubtedly reach a deal with Notre Dame in the mix — with Versus/NBC to complement the network’s NHL weekday coverage.

If that’s the way it unfolds, I might have a better chance of covering Air Force in the NCAA Tournament than the Pioneers or CC Tigers. That is, if the NCAA Tournament doesn’t tweak its computer selection model and increase the reward for strength of schedule and quality wins.

CORVALLIS, Ore. — I asked Oregon State athletic director Bob De Carolis how in the world Oregon State won two national baseball titles. The Beavers’ titles in 2006 and 2007 were the first by a northern school since Ohio State won it in 1966.

A huge boost came in 1999 when the Pac-10 switched from North and South divisions to one conference. Before, Oregon State played in a Mickey Mouse North Division with Washington, Washington State and Portland State.

“Kids who got passed up by the California schools wanted to beat them,” De Carolis said.

Please note: Colorado will be the only school in the Pac-12 not playing baseball.

The Denver Post’s John Henderson is visiting each Pac-12 town before Colorado joins the conference next season. Follow his travels here.

Colorado quarterback Tyler Hansen at the Buffaloes' spring game on April 9.

Well, at least the rebuilding Buffaloes aren’t picked to finish last in their Pac-12 debut this fall.

I picked up a copy of the Sporting News’ 2011 College Football magazine (these preseason yearbooks seem to be published earlier every year) and saw that CU was picked for fifth in the Pac-12 South Division, ahead of UCLA, which is coached by former Buffs boss Rick Neuheisel.

The league’s other newbie, Utah, is picked by the Sporting News to win the South, followed in order by Arizona State, Southern Cal, Arizona, CU and UCLA.

Stanford is projected as the North Division winner, followed in order by Oregon, Oregon State, Washington, California and Washington State.

Red-hot and already historic Denver takes its 12-game winning streak to the NCAA Final Four in Baltimore this week. The sixth-seeded Pioneers (15-2), who will make their first appearance in the national semifinals, will wear their “home whites” against No. 7 Virginia (11-5) at 2 p.m. MT Saturday at M&T Bank Stadium, home of the Baltimore Ravens and immediately adjacent to Oriole Park at Camden Yards.

The other semifinal pits No. 5 Duke (14-5) against unseeded Maryland (12-4). Three of the four teams come from the ACC; DU from the ECAC. The semifinal winners meet Monday at 1:30 MT.

Here’s a quick look at the DU-Virgina matchup from a common-opponents standpoint, which — in addition to the seeding — says the new kids on the block will be the favorites:

After ESPN’s much-maligned “little guys” gabfest demeaning TCU during and after the Rose Bowl, it’s only fitting ESPN rename its Bowl Challenge Cup. How about “Sippy Cup”?

The Mountain West, 4-1 during the postseason, claimed its third trophy in the last four seasons for the league with the best bowl record. The only blemish on the record was Utah, a little guy going to a big boy (Pac-12) conference. The Utes lost to Boise State, the all-time epitome of the little guy with its so-called “Smurf Turf.”

Here’s another last word: There are national news reports of electronic billboards popping up in Columbus, Ohio. The message: “Congratulations to TCU for their (sic) BCS Rose Bowl Victory” — Little Sisters of the Poor. (Pictures here.)

Over the weekend, the Columbus Dispatch newspaper wrote it has received confirmation from Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith that his office is negotiating with Colorado for a 2011 football game between the Buffaloes and Buckeyes.

The game would be played in Ohio Stadium.

“We are trying to finalize a game for 2011,” Smith told the Dispatch. “We hope to have an announcement on that within the next month.”

CU and Ohio State have not played each other in football since 1986, a 13-10 Ohio State victory in Columbus.

I’m not sure this has anything to do with the interest or negotiations but CU Chancellor Phil DiStefano holds bachelor’s and doctorate degrees from Ohio State and came to CU in in 1974 from his alma mater, where he taught humanities education.

According to Kyle Ringo of the Boulder Daily Camera, Colorado would play a nonconference football game at Ohio State in 2011 — If CU is able to begin a Pac-10 Conference schedule next year.

I asked CU associate athletic director David Plati and he would neither confirm nor deny Ringo’s report. Plati has scheduling responsibilities in addition to being the school’s sports info director.

Plati’s vague response probably means a game in Columbus is at least a possibility.

Said Plati: “Nothing is set in stone. We’ve discussed several options and have talked with more than one school. A few dominoes need to fall yet. Plus, we need to know if we’re in the Pac-10 (in 2011 instead of 2012) and have a nine-game conference schedule. And (even) if we’re still in the Big 12 in 2011, we have to replace the Nebraska game in Boulder since they’ll be in the Big Ten.”

As it stands now, Colorado is scheduled to host California as a non-conference opponent in 2011. Cal, obviously, is a member of the Pac-10. So, if CU were to be in that league next year the Buffs would need to find another opponent for the non-conference portion of the schedule — if the Pac-10 votes for an eight-game conference slate.

Ohio State’s 2011 nonconference schedule has home games against Akron and Toledo and a road game at Miami (Fla.), so the Buckeyes would need to add a game, assuming Big Ten members have eight conference games in the expanded 12-team Big Ten beginning next year.

The current edition of The Sporting News ranks all 120 NCAA FBS teams and has Colorado at No. 74.

Players or coaches from various schools are quoted for their reaction, among them CU running backs coach Darian Hagan. Hagan believes Colorado is underrated.

“Seventy-four will prove to be too low,” Hagan said. “I think when people see what we do this fall, they’re going to be surprised.

“The coaches won’t be — we know what we’ve got — but those who have written us off before the season even starts I firmly believe will wind up being surprised.”

Air Force, at No. 42, is tops among area schools in The Sporting News’ preseason rankings. Colorado State is No. 80. Wyoming No. 88. The magazine’s rankings do not include FCS teams such as Northern Colorado.

Yes, the Big 12 Conference beat the odds and, just in the nick of time, survived the defections of Colorado to the Pac-10 and Nebraska to the Big Ten.

Now comes the next issue. Will the new Big 12 last?

It sounds like first-year Texas Tech football coach Tommy Tuberville would recommend that league officials do not order cases of champagne. All the celebrating may be short-lived.

Tuberville, formerly head coach at Auburn and Mississippi, criticized the Big 12’s imbalanced revenue-sharing formula that allocates more money to schools with football teams that play in nationally televised games.

“I don’t think this conference will last long because there is too much disparity between all the teams,” Tuberville said this week on Rivals Radio. “In the SEC, for instance, Vanderbilt makes as much money in the television contract as Florida. Everybody is good with it. Everybody is on the same page. Everybody gets the same votes.

“That doesn’t happen here in the Big 12. We have some teams that get a little bit more money and have a little bit more stroke than some of the other teams. And when that happens, you’re gonna have teams looking to leave and (have) reasons to leave.

“We have a 10-team league right now, but I just don’t know how long that’s gonna last, to be honest with you.”

Also speaking this week on nationwide radio, Nebraska athletic director Tom Osborne told Jim Rome that one reason for the Huskers’ move to the Big Ten was Nebraska’s regard for that league’s “all for one, and one for all” mindset.

Meanwhile, Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel recently told a gathering of Columbus, Ohio, civic leaders that he expects the Big Ten and other conferences to expand further. Tressel added that he wasn’t aware of any timeframes.

“I haven’t been in any of the meeting where the rumblings are going on,” Tressel said. “I just hear what you do, but I would expect the conferences to get larger.”

Don’t look for any further expansion announcements by the Big Ten or Pac-10 this year. But Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany acknowledged that the addition of Nebraska may be only a first step in that league getting larger.

It’s expected that Missouri of the Big 12 could be a target if the Big Ten decides to add more teams.

For more than a week, it appeared that five Big 12 teams -– Texas, Oklahoma, Texas A&M, Texas Tech and Oklahoma State – might join Colorado for a Pac-16. That grandiose plan fell apart when the Pac-10 failed to budge after Texas demanded that it be able to form its own Longhorn television network.

The Big 12 allows its members to set up their own TV networks, but the Pac-10 and Big Ten do not. In a short time, the Big Ten Network has become financially successful beyond expectations. The Pac-10 plans to follow that model and form its own conference TV network.

During a Q&A with the The Oklahoman newspaper in Oklahoma City, OU football coach Bob Stoops sounded disappointed that the Pac-16 failed to come to fruition.

“I thought it was exciting when all that came about,” Stoops said. “The Pac-10 brings long tradition and history, great schools, great academic schools. I just thought all of it was a win-win in my eyes.

“We’ve moved this way (to save the Big 12),” Stoops added. “I’m not at all complaining. But if that (Pac-16) was going to happen, the possibility of that was exciting.”

SPOKANE, Wash. — College basketball teams from the Big Ten Conference sure like to crash a Sweet 16 party.

Who would have thought that the Big Ten would have the most teams standing (three) in the NCAA Tournament, with Michigan State, Ohio State and Purdue still breathing and headed to the round of 16?

The Big Ten had a good but not great regular season. Some would say that it was even disappointing, considering that the league had six teams in the preseason top-25 Associated Press poll and got only five into the NCAA Tournament. In conference RPI, the Big Ten rated no better than fourth.

But no matter what happens in December, January and February, the Big Ten always seems to be ready for March.

Here are some observations and theories:

Rebounding: With the exception of guard-oriented Ohio State, Big Ten teams love to pound the boards. That can prove especially pivotal in NCAA Tournament games, where scoring typically is down and each possession becomes precious.
Rugged play: The Big Ten carries that reputation, and deservedly so. And in the NCAA Tournament officials often “let the players play” and don’t call as many touch fouls.

Tough environments: The Big Ten typically leads the nation in average home attendance. Its players are conditioned to playing in big venues with hostile environments.

Coaching: Collectively, Big Ten coaches are tough-minded and solid in X’s and O’s. And, perhaps more important, they have a knack at getting their teams to peak in March. Perhaps that’s a reflection of their players constantly and consistently improving throughout the season.

I don’t expect a Big Ten team in this year’s Final Four. But the fact that three are still alive deserves a tip of the hat.